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The Dorothy Clayborne Fellowship
for Aspiring Teachers of Color
At Bryn Mawr, we believe that learning from a diverse group of educators elevates and enriches every students’ educational experience. By intentionally nurturing a diverse and inclusive community, we encourage students and adults to develop respectful and inspirational relationships within and across racial identities. As we strive to build a community that celebrates and values each individual, increasing the diversity of our faculty is one of our highest priorities as a community.
The Dorothy Clayborne Fellowship for Aspiring Teachers of Color is named in honor of a true expert in her field who inspired confidence and a love of learning in her students for over 60 years. The Fellowship includes mentoring, professional development and experiential learning for aspiring teachers of color.
Fellows teach a reduced load and/or co-teach with a mentor teacher while engaging fully in the life of the school. Fellows will be integral and active members of the faculty through participation in athletics, arts, clubs, DEI training and service learning. Individual interests, both in the classroom and beyond, will help shape each fellowship experience.
Support The Clayborne Fellowship
Support The Clayborne Fellowship
The exceptional support from our generous donors, spearheaded by Bryn Mawr alumna Dr. Mira Kautzky '88 and her husband Dr. Keith Flaherty, has enabled us to surpass the $1 million mark for The Clayborne Fellowship. Our next objective is to reach a total of $2 million to fully fund a second fellowship to support aspiring teachers of color. If you wish to contribute to The Clayborne Fellowship, please reach out to Director of Advancement Cory Birdsall.
About Dorothy Clayborne
A distinguished educator and the first Black teacher in Bryn Mawr’s Lower School, Dorothy Clayborne came to Bryn Mawr in 1985 after retiring from 30 years of teaching in Baltimore City Public Schools. At Bryn Mawr, she served as a second grade homeroom teacher for more than a decade and provided reading support, helping our Lower School girls discover their confidence and love of reading. Ms. Clayborne's commitment to outstanding education is an inspiration to us all, and we believe that the Clayborne Fellowship is a fitting tribute to her legacy.
A distinguished educator and the first Black teacher in Bryn Mawr’s Lower School, Dorothy Clayborne came to Bryn Mawr in 1985 after retiring from 30 years of teaching in Baltimore City Public Schools. At Bryn Mawr, she served as a second grade homeroom teacher for more than a decade and provided reading support, helping our Lower School girls discover their confidence and love of reading. Ms. Clayborne's commitment to outstanding education is an inspiration to us all, and we believe that the Clayborne Fellowship is a fitting tribute to her legacy.
Meet Our Current Fellows
2023-2024
Ashley Johnson
Ashley Johnson studied English at Towson University, serving as a research assistant under Dr. Sherita Roundtree studying noise, pedagogy, and composition. She is a graduate student at Johns Hopkins University, working towards her Masters in Liberal Arts. Ashley’s research and professional interests lie at the intersections of interdisciplinary creative practice, Black feminism, embodiment and community liberation and transformation. As a Clayborne Fellow, she is currently teaching Middle School English.
Quichey Johnson ’15
Quichey Johnson joins the Dorothy Clayborne Fellowship as a Physical Education teacher in Lower, Middle and Upper Schools. Quichey graduated from Bryn Mawr School in 2015 and returned to Bryn Mawr in 2019 serving as an Athletic Director Intern while pursuing her Bachelor’s degree in Business Management from Goucher College. In addition to teaching PE, Quichey will be coaching our field hockey, basketball and softball teams.
2022-2023
Allen Branch
Allen Branch graduated from Johns Hopkins Peabody Conservatory with a Bachelor of Music in jazz performance. He joined the Bryn Mawr Teaching Assistant team during 2020-21, working in both the Middle and Upper Schools. Passionate about music, Allen’s goal is to become an instrumental music teacher. He spent part of this summer teaching music as a part of the Middle Grades Partnership at Bryn Mawr and is continuing his work in the Middle School arts department this year.
Ashley Johnson
Ashley Johnson studied English at Towson University, serving as a research assistant under Dr. Sherita Roundtree studying noise, pedagogy, and composition. She is a graduate student at Johns Hopkins University, working towards her Masters in Liberal Arts. Ashley’s research and professional interests lie at the intersections of interdisciplinary creative practice, Black feminism, embodiment and community liberation and transformation. As a Clayborne Fellow, she is currently teaching Middle School English.
2021-2022
Allen Branch
Allen Branch graduated from Johns Hopkins Peabody Conservatory with a Bachelor of Music in jazz performance. He joined the Bryn Mawr Teaching Assistant team during 2020-21, working in both the Middle and Upper Schools. Passionate about music, Allen’s goal is to become an instrumental music teacher. He spent part of this summer teaching music as a part of the Middle Grades Partnership at Bryn Mawr and is continuing his work in the Middle School arts department this year.
Aaron Jackson
Aaron Jackson is a graduate of Swarthmore College with a degree in film and media studies and holds a Master’s degree in MediaxArts from Temple University. Aaron spent the 2020-21 school year serving as a Teaching Assistant in the Lower School, filling in as needed in nearly all subjects from pre-kindergarten through fifth grade. As a 2021-22 Clayborne Fellow, Aaron worked in the Lower School on applied technology collaborations, world languages, and diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. He is currently in a teaching fellowship program at Temple University.
Imani Cauthen-Robinson '12
Imani Cauthen-Robinson '12 is a graduate of Bryn Mawr and Towson University, where she studied English. She returned to Bryn Mawr in January 2020 to assist in the Lower School office while pursuing her master’s degree in content writing. Wanting to gain classroom experience and curriculum development skills, Imani co-taught 4th grade while serving as a Clayborne Fellow and Wilgis Teaching Fellow during the 2021-22 academic year. She is currently a communications specialist at Georgetown University.
Sydnee Simms
Sydnee Simms attended Morgan State Univerersity to study elementary education. She joined the Bryn Mawr Little School in 2019, working in both the two- and three- year-old rooms and serving as the DEI Liaison. As a 2021-22 Clayborne Fellow, Sydnee wanted to explore teaching at the Lower School level, develop her DEI practitioner skills, and grow as an educator. Sydnee worked primarily with Lower School with arts and music, as well as the Office of Institutional Equity and Inclusive Practice. She is currently teaching at Bolton Hill Nursery.
Thank you to our foundational donors for their generosity and support of The Clayborne Fellowship.
Peggy & Tim Bessent
Ann-Barron Carneal & Ted Winstead P'22
Dorothy R. Clayborne
Dorothy Sloan Atkinson '46 Foundation
Harry S. Gruner and Rebecca D. Henry P'10
Richard and Margaret Himelfarb P'93; GP'26,'31
Ann-Barron Carneal & Ted Winstead P'22
Dorothy R. Clayborne
Dorothy Sloan Atkinson '46 Foundation
Harry S. Gruner and Rebecca D. Henry P'10
Richard and Margaret Himelfarb P'93; GP'26,'31
Elizabeth Himelfarb Hurwitz '93 and David Hurwitz P'26, '31
Pam & Sam Himmelrich P'01, '05, '09
Mr. C. Godfrey Jacobs and Dr. Maria C. Jacobs
Drs. Mira Kautzky '88 & Keith Flaherty
Sarah E. Keogh '98 & Jonathan Cooper P'27
Cheryl A. Mickel
Dorothy and Herbert Roche
Georgia D. Smith '72 & Mark R. Fetting P'01; GP'32, '33
Jamila Webb P'24
Wilbert Walker
Drs. Mira Kautzky '88 & Keith Flaherty
Sarah E. Keogh '98 & Jonathan Cooper P'27
Cheryl A. Mickel
Dorothy and Herbert Roche
Georgia D. Smith '72 & Mark R. Fetting P'01; GP'32, '33
Jamila Webb P'24
Wilbert Walker
